The Go Ahead Boys and the Treasure Cave Part 17

"What!" exclaimed Fred. "Where is it?"

"Right out there," said Grant, pointing to a white speck that could be faintly seen far out on the water.

"But how did it get there?" insisted Fred.

"It floated," said Grant quietly, "and I'll tell you how. You know we pulled it up on the sh.o.r.e, but I'm afraid we didn't pull it far enough.

While we were away, the tide must have come in and floated it off. There it goes, and here we stay, I guess."

"Don't be so sure of that," exclaimed George, and he began to divest himself of his few remaining clothes as rapidly as possible.

"What do you think you're going to do, Pop?" demanded Grant.

"I'm going after that boat."

"By swimming?"

"Of course. How else could I reach it?" and by this time George was almost stripped to his skin.

"Don't be silly, Pop," exclaimed Fred. "That boat is at least a half-mile from sh.o.r.e and you couldn't possibly catch it. It's getting farther away all the time."

"It's worth a try, isn't it?" demanded George. "You don't want to stay here the rest of your life, do you?" He was a splendid swimmer and had won many prizes in this line of sport. At the same time what he proposed to attempt now was most ambitious.

"You're crazy, Pop," said Grant earnestly. "You can't possibly make it."

"I'll tell you that later," said George doggedly, and he made as if to start down the beach. John, however, seized him and held him firmly.

"Please don't try it," he begged. "You'll only drown."

"Let me go," exclaimed George.

"Think ob dem sha'ks," said Sam. "Dey's millions ob dem out dar."

"That's right, Pop," cried Grant. "Think of those sharks. Even if you could swim that far the sharks would get you."

"Put your clothes on again," said Fred. "We need you worse than we do the boat."

The argument about the sharks had more influence on George than anything else. He did not mind the ocean, but the thought of its hungry inhabitants was too much for him. He yielded to the pleas of his comrades and slowly began to put on his clothes.

"What'll we do?" he said dazedly. "It looks as if we were stranded."

"I guess we are," agreed Grant grimly. "We'll have to sit here and wait until some steamer happens by and picks us up."

"But how will any one know we're here?" said George.

"We'll hoist a flag."

"That's all right, but where are we going to get a flag?"

"I'll show you," exclaimed Grant, and he made his way to the spot where their stores and provisions were piled. A moment later he returned with the canvas tarpaulin that had been used as a cover. "Here's our flag,"

he said, waving the heavy piece of canvas around his head.

"It's too heavy," objected John. "It would take a gale to make that stand out."

"It is heavy," admitted Grant. "I don't know of anything else we can use though."

"Except my shirt," said George quickly. "That'll make a real flag."

"But what will you wear?" said John.

"Nothing maybe," replied George, cheerfully. "In this climate I don't believe any one would suffer much from lack of clothes."

"Probably not," Grant agreed. "Why use your shirt in preference to any one else's though."

"Because I offer it first."

"All right," laughed Grant. "Pa.s.s it over."

George handed his shirt to Grant and soon the seams were ripped so that it covered the largest amount of possible s.p.a.ce. "Now for a flag-pole,"

exclaimed Grant.

"I'll attend to that," exclaimed Fred and he straightway fell upon a nearby tree with his jackknife. He cut off one of the longest and straightest branches after considerable trouble, and presented it for his companions' approval. "How's that?" he demanded proudly. "It's about thirty feet long and stuck up on top of that hill, it could be seen for a long, long distance."

"We'll now go up and raise the flag," cried Grant, and leading the way he set out for the top of the hill.

"Look at the brook," exclaimed John suddenly, after they had covered about half the distance to their destination.

"It's not a very big one," remarked George as he stepped across the tiny stream. "I wonder where it comes from."

"We can follow it and see," said Grant. "If the water is good to drink, we are in luck, for we may need it desperately before long."

"It looks clear enough," said Fred. "I'll taste of it."

"Wait till we find the source," advised Grant. "We can tell better then whether it is good or not."

They soon discovered the origin of the little stream. Set in among a grove of scrub palmetto trees was a spring. The water bubbled merrily out into a little pool, the bottom of which was covered with shining white pebbles.

"That looks all right to me," exclaimed Fred eagerly and a moment later he was flat on his stomach, taking long draughts of the clear water.

"Whew, that's fine," he said enthusiastically, as he rose to his feet once more and sighed with satisfaction.

"Is it cool?" asked John.

"It's almost cold," said Fred. "Why don't you try it?"

John did try it and so did every one else. All p.r.o.nounced it to be just as Fred had described it. "We can live for a long while on that water and the fruit that's here," remarked Fred. "We won't have to worry about starving anyway."

"Just the same we want to get our flag up," exclaimed Grant. "Let's do it now and get it over with."